I'm wanting to change out the fluid on my transmission before doing a cross state drive this weekend and need some help. I've done the simple remove the drain plug and refill last year but wanting to get more fluid out, almost all if possible. I'm a struggling college student so i don't have much in the way of funds to have a shop do the full service, so all service will be done at home. Is there a way for me to say disconnect trans cooler lines or anything of that sort to drain the Torque converter and the majority of the filthy fluid if not all of it so i can refill with fresh stuff?

 

no, not safely.
Drain, fill, drive , repeat 2x

 

no, not safely.
Drain, fill, drive , repeat 2x

 

You can't drain it all without removing the transmission. But if you disconnect the hoses, you can rig up something like this...

One bucket to catch the dirty fluid. Put the discharge hose in that.
Get a BIG funnel hooked up to the suction hose, & have someone constantly pouring new ATF into that as the engine is running. Make sure you don't screw up & let it suck air. You'll need lots of ATF. Keep it flowing like this until the discharge comes out clean.

I would do a couple drain/fill cycles. It's much less of a PITA.

 

If you drained/filled it a year ago, it really should not be all that filthy. Do another drain/fill and have a nice trip.